by T A Williams
Ethan searched his mind for a moment as if the memory of killing a man was hard to find. “Oh, you mean the smokes guy? That was Roy, I didn’t hurt him.”
“But you didn’t stop him.”
“That was different, I didn’t like that man. He was always screwing people over. I like you.”
The man talked as if that should have comforted her, but it didn’t.
Roy walked into the room and stopped. His right arm was bandaged from his encounter with Tiger. Ally’s thoughts turned to Tiger and she tried not to cry. The man had stabbed him. She remembered her dog, the only thing she had left in her life, limping away into the woods. He was going to lie there in the woods with no one to take care of him. She was by herself again.
Roy walked up to her cage and gave it a swift kick. Ethan gave him a hateful look but the man didn’t notice.
“So you’re really all alone out here. There isn’t shit in this house, no sign anyone has been sleeping or staying here. Your dumb little ass has been sleeping in the shed when you’re right next to this mansion.”
Ally didn’t say anything.
“Where is all your stuff? You just sleeping on the floor in there? No bed? No food?”
He hadn’t found her secret room.
Roy spat on the floor next to the cage. “If you’ve survived out here all alone you’ve got some stuff. Tell me where it’s at and I’ll make sure you get at least a meal a day.”
Ally said nothing.
“Kids these days have no manners. If an elder asked me a question when I was younger, you better believe I would answer. If I didn’t my ass would be outside picking a switch so they could tan my hide. What you think Ethan, should I tan her hide?”
“No, Ethan. She’s just scared. Give her time and she will let us know what she has.”
Roy looked Ethan up and down in disgust. “Don’t get too attached.”
Ethan glanced to Ally and back to Roy. “What…what do you mean?”
“I know a guy on the far side of the city that…..collects youngsters. We can get ourselves a couple of guns, if not more for her.”
Ethan began to shake his head. “No, no, no. We’re not doing that. She’s a good little girl, I’m not-“
“You’re not going to what?” Roy turned on Ethan. The man stopped in his tracks and lowered his head. “Don’t you ever assume you can tell me what I can and can’t do. You understand me?”
“I’m just saying. Let’s give her some time to give up all her stuff, then we can talk about it.”
Roy spat on the ground near Ethan’s feet. “Don’t push me. You would be dead in a ditch right now if it wasn’t for me. She stays here as long as I allow it, then we’re trading her for some goods.”
Ethan kept his head down until Roy stomped out of the room. He stood there for a few more minutes then walked up to Ally’s cage and looked at her ashamed. “Don’t worry little bird, I won’t let him hurt you. You’re mine now.”
The man then left the room, leaving Ally alone in her cage.
Ben
“What the fuck is taking him so long?” Stevenson spat as he paced the room.
Mason glanced outside. “We still have a few hours of daylight light, give him a little more time. He may have found something.”
“Until we hear gunfire, he’s ok.” Zima said as he loaded bullets into a magazine.
Rook and Mason had been taking turns scouting the surrounding area. Typically they were only gone for a few hours but Rook had been gone considerably longer. Mason and Zima seemed calm and collected but they always seemed that way.
“If he’s not back in thirty then I’ll head out and look for him.” Zima said as he laid another full magazine on the dusty wooden floor.
Then they heard a gunshot.
It echoed down the streets and through the empty buildings. Both Zima and Mason paused what they were doing, waiting. A few seconds later the town was filled with the sound of gunfire. Mason, Zima, and Stevenson had their guns and were on their feet before Ben could register what was going on.
“Firefight a few blocks west.” Zima said as he looked through the window. “Got nothing over here, gonna have to hoof it.”
Mason turned to Ben. “You set up at this window. We’ll make our way back down this street. If you see us getting pinned down and have a shot then take it.” Ben’s face must have been filed with fear because Mason paused. “You’re good Ben. Remember, short bursts. Once you shoot get back into cover and if they find your position, then move to a different room and a different window, got it?”
“Yes, sir.” Ben’s voice shook as he spoke.
Mason hesitated for a second.
“Now or never.” Zima said as he waited by the door. Stevenson ran out the door.
Mason started to say something but stopped himself. He ran out the door and Zima followed behind him. And just like that Ben was by himself. The gunfire continued to echo down the streets but all Ben could hear was the thumping of his heart.
“Safety off.” he said to himself as he got the assault rifle ready. “Aim down the sights. Short bursts.”
They had been holed up in the hotel for what felt like forever waiting to make their move. Ben knew eventually it would come down to this, but he still wasn’t ready. He caught a glimpse of his people running from the hotel across the street into another alleyway.
And then things got quiet. No gunfire, no shouting, nothing.
Minutes passed. Ben couldn’t tell how many but soon the sun began to touch the horizon. That was when the gunfire returned. Ben thought the gunfire was loud before but this time it was all he could hear. Down the street he saw a truck full of men screeching down the street and out of sight. They were outnumbered.
He didn’t think twice. Ben grabbed two extra clips and headed down the stairs towards the street. As soon as he hit the street, the sound doubled in intensity. The gun swung around wildly as he sprinted across the street into the same alley he had last seen Mason and the others in.
The buildings surrounding the alley were tall enough to block out the last of the setting sun, leaving everything else in darkness. Ben paused momentarily, allowing his eyes to adjust. As soon he was able to make out knocked over trashcans and trash that had been strewn about, he took off in the direction of the gunfire. People shouting stopped him at the edge of a building and he peeked around. A truck had just driven out of view while another sat across the street facing away from the building he was hiding behind. Two men stood in the bed of the truck, their guns pointed towards a far building. From where Ben was, he could see the front of that building had been torn apart by gunfire.
“They still in there?” one of the men in the truck asked.
“Yeah, they’re hiding somewhere up top.” came a voice from inside.
They were stuck inside. Ben checked and confirmed the safety of his gun was off. He tried to take a calming breath but it came out in a shaky huff. He placed the butt of the gun to his shoulder and aimed down the sights at the two men in the back of the truck. Short bursts.
As his finger was approaching the trigger, the gun was torn from his hand and someone from behind him put their hand over his mouth. Ben let out a muffled scream and tried to break away, but the person’s grip was too tight.
“It’s me Ben, it’s Mason!” the person whispered in his ear.
The person’s grip loosened and Ben turned around to see Mason standing there. Sweat was pouring from the man’s face and there was a large cut going down his right cheek, but other than that, he seemed fine. Not everyone was as lucky. Behind Mason, Zima and Stevenson were carrying Rook. The man’s shirt was covered in blood and he was unconscious.
“They think you’re in that building.” Ben said, pointing to the building across the street.
“Good,” Mason said. “Follow me.”
Mason sprinted ahead of the group and Ben remained a few paces behind him. He got to the edge of the alleyway and looked both ways down the street.
&
nbsp; “Ben, you cover that way.” He pointed down the street to Ben’s left. “If anyone comes down that road, you fire. Short bursts.”
Ben nodded. For the first time the fear subsided. Rook was hurt and in order to get him back to the hotel they needed Ben’s help. This wasn’t them asking him to hold down the fort or just asking him to stay put, this was real.
He turned his attention to his side of the street and held the rifle steady. He heard the sounds of Stevenson and Zima walk past him and after a few moments felt Mason tap him on the shoulder.
“Go across, I got you.”
Ben took off across the street and into the hotel, Mason was right behind him.
“Shit, shit, shit. He’s not doing good.” Zima said as they carried Rook up the stairs. The fear returned as Ben watched this normally calm man showing a different range of emotions.
Mason’s face remained stoic but Ben had known him long enough to catch the look of concern on his face.
They brought Rook up to their floor and laid him on the ground. Stevenson ran over to his supplies.
“Rook, you still with me here?” Zima asked slapping the man gently on the cheek.
Rook’s eyes rolled around in his head and he was in and out of consciousness. His skin was pale and the only real color he had was his blood stained shirt.
Stevenson kneeled down beside him and used scissors to cut off the man’s shirt, revealing the bullet wound on the lower right side of his abdomen. With every breath, blood seemed to gush out of the wound. Mason put pressure on the wound, causing Rook’s eyes to shoot wide open and he let out a guttural yell. Zima grabbed the man’s head and pushed it down.
“Hang in there, we’re helping out.” Zima said.
Stevenson pushed Mason to the side and began to pour some kind of powder into the wound.
“What’s that?” Ben asked, his voice coming out small.
“Quick clot,” Mason said keeping his attention on Rook. “Should help stop the bleeding.”
“Not going to fucking matter if the bullet hit an organ.” Stevenson said as he continued pouring the powder into the wound. Once he was finished, he covered the wound with gauze and nodded to Mason, who came back over and put pressure on the wound. Stevenson slid over and began to check out the bullet wound to Rook’s shoulder. “Is this the only other one?”
“As far as I could see.” Zima answered. “Rook, you hit anywhere else man?”
Rook’s eyes were closed.
“Bullet passed clean though,” Stevenson said, more to himself. He glanced over to Rook and Zima. “Try to keep him alert.”
Zima slapped the man a few more times but Rook barely responded. The man’s face looked even paler than it had just a few moments ago.
“Why isn’t he waking up?” Ben asked, not trying to keep the panic out of his voice.
No one answered.
The sun had set sometime during the ordeal, leaving most of the room in darkness. Ben found himself walking out of the room down the hallway. He didn’t want to be in that room, he didn’t want to be in that building, but he didn’t want to go outside into that piece of shit world. So he sat on the floor in the hallway. He could make out the trail of blood from Rook when they had carried him in. In the darkness it reminded him of the drops of oil that would pool on their garage floor when they were younger.
He sat there in silence. He had no idea how long he sat there; time had no meaning. After a time, Mason walked out of the room and sat across from him on the hallway floor. Ben readied himself for a pep talk. For Mason to tell him that Rook was going to be okay and that this was what he was talking about when he said the world was dangerous. Instead, Mason only said two words.
“He’s gone.”
Ben immediately looked up at the man. Mason’s face had always been stone but there were now cracks showing. His jaw was clenched too tight, and his eyes fought in vain to contain the water that was filling up in them.
“What? How? Stevenson put that stuff in there to stop the bleeding.”
“It hit something internally. That stuff works externally, not internally.
Ben didn’t know Rook. He had only talked to the man a handful of times and even then the conversation only consisted of two to three word sentences. But the man had fought to protect others, and he had been killed. Ben didn’t cry. He didn’t feel anger. He felt nothing.
“You ok?” Mason asked him.
It was a stupid question but one that was supposed to be asked regardless. Ben nodded.
“Don’t worry,” Mason said as he stood up. “We are going to make it right.”
The man left him in the hallway. Ben sat there with no intention of leaving.
Ben
The thunder shook the windows in their dark room. The storm arrived suddenly and battered the old building, but no one in the room seemed to notice. They had moved the body into another room but Rook’s dried blood stained the middle of the floor, reminding them of what had just happened. Mason and Zima sat on opposite sides of the room with their head to the floor while Stevenson paced slowly throughout the room. Ben sat just a few feet from Mason.
“We just going to sit here all day?” Stevenson asked.
“There isn’t a damn thing we can do in this storm and you know it.” Zima said.
“We can use it as cover to get the fuck out of here.”
That caught everyone’s attention.
“Get out of here?” The words came out slow from Zima’s mouth.
“Yeah, fucking get out of here,” Stevenson said as he began pacing again. “We have no fucking business being here. Our asses are supposed to be on our way to Kentucky; instead we’re here trying to save a bunch of shits who could care less.”
Zima and Mason shared a quick glance.
“What part of our orders confuse you exactly?” Mason asked.
“Don’t give me that shit. I know exactly what our last orders where and that was to get to Kentucky. Not to squat here. That order superseded the other. ”
“Our orders,” Zima started, the anger in his voice evident, “are to maintain order regardless. If they needed us there in a certain amount of time, they would have let us know.”
“You fucking kidding me?” Stevenson kicked the wall. “You go in that room and look at what is left of Rook then you tell me we are making the best choice. There are dozens of those fuckers out there and they got a shit load more ammo than we do.”
“I’m afraid too.” The words were out of Ben’s mouth before he realized it. Everyone stopped and stared at him, even Stevenson stopped his pacing. “I’m afraid because there are more of them than us. I’m afraid because they have more weapons than we do. I’m afraid but I’m also pissed.” The realization struck Ben hard and filled him with confidence. “I’m pissed that there are people like that out there. People like that killed my family and at the time I couldn’t do anything about it. I believed I was a child and I acted like a child and my family paid for it. I’m not a child anymore. I can do something about it now and I can stop them from hurting anyone else.”
Stevenson shook his head. “It’s not that fucking easy.”
“Nothing is. I could die trying to stop them, but I’m willing to do that. I’m not willing to let the people who killed Rook keep on doing what they are doing. They are not going to get off that easy.”
Stevenson stood there in silence for a moment. He took in a deep breath. “I’ll follow orders. I was just saying it’s fucked, that’s all.”
“Yes it is,” Zima said. “Let’s focus on what we know. I had three confirmed KIAs.”
“I had multiple confirmed hits and I’m tied with Zima on KIAs.” Mason said.
Stevenson glanced between the two men and took in another breath. “I killed two, confirmed. I know I caught another or those fuckers in the leg, probably bled out within the hour.”
“How we looking with ammo?” Zima asked.
“We can’t have another extended firefight like that.” Mason sa
id. “Still probably have a few clips in the Jeep but we’re limited.”
Zima nodded and began to talk strategy. Ben should have been listening but he couldn’t focus. He still couldn’t believe what he had said, but every word of it was true. During the fight Mason had treated him like an equal but even more so, Ben felt like an equal, not like a child. He still didn’t know what he was doing but he could learn and he was willing to learn.
He looked to Mason, who was staring at him. The man gave him a small smile and nodded his head. Ben hid his smile. Things were different now.
Alec
Clive looked like a man defeated when they banished him. Freddie and Malcolm had stood nearby, guns in hand, when Alec untied him and gave the news. Clive didn’t say anything, he wouldn’t even meet Alec’s gaze. The only reaction was when Alec told him if he returned they would kill him, Clive’s shoulders tightened up for a few seconds then dropped again. Freddie dropped him off on the main road and watched as Clive headed east. For the first month they upped their patrols but Clive never returned.
Life continued on after that. Their settlement grew in size as some of the people from Centralia moved in to help with the small amount of crops they were able to grow. They had managed to capture nearly a dozen horses, most of which were used to help plow and work the fields. They still struggled to keep the cows enclosed as the animals tended to make short work of their makeshift fences. And Margie and Beverly were able to capture several chickens so a couple times a week Alec got to enjoy scrambled eggs once again.
Alec swung the axe down, slicing the large branch into two pieces. He stood there for a minute catching his breath and surveying the large collection of wood scattered all along his feet. He tossed the axe to the side and began placing the pieces of wood into the nearby wheelbarrow.
As he was tossing them in, he noticed Jamie walk nonchalantly to the nearby fence and stand there watching the horses graze. Trevor said that his daughter had seemed distant recently but he wasn’t sure why. Alec had not been sure what to tell the man because for the first time in a long time things seemed to be good. No worries about food, or shelter, or if someone was going to show up and demand food. He stood there thinking for a moment and decided to try. He just hoped he wasn’t crossing the line.
